Optical camouflage used to render car interiors invisible

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One of the optional extras that has been appearing in new cars for a few years now is rear parking sensors and cameras. These sensors typically use a tone to help you judge how close you are to obstacles such as other cars or a wall. The camera goes a step further and shows the driver the rear of the car, but displayed on a screen in the dash.

Keio University in Japan wants to go a step further and use optical camouflage to make the interior of a car effectively invisible. Optical camouflage typically works by projecting what’s behind an object in front of it, rendering the surface invisible. It’s used by a number of animals as a defense mechanism, but severalprojects are underway to adapt the idea for use by the military.

Professor Masahiko Inami at Keio University believes the same system could work to render car interiors invisible. So the driver would no longer see the interior of the car as it is replaced with a constantly updated exterior view.

That may be jarring at first, but it does make a lot of sense from a visibility perspective. Nothing outside is hidden from the driver, and turning to see where you are reversing would allow the driver to see very clearly what obstacles there are. Importantly, the projection retains a sense of depth as to where things actually are in relation to the vehicle. Another advantage of such a system is it can render daylight visuals even when it’s dark outside, again meaning better visibility for the driver.

Initially, Professor Masahiko is trying to perfect making the back seat of a car invisible when viewing it through a half mirror, but eventually he wants to improve the system to the point where the entire interior of the car can be hidden regardless of your position inside the vehicle.

Professor Masahiko is talking to vehicle manufacturers about using the system, with the aim being to get it installed in a car within 5 years.